As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Portable information handling systems, such as notebook computers, often include rechargeable batteries in the form of battery packs for powering a system load of the information handling system. Such portable information handling systems are also typically configured to receive external power from an AC adapter for recharging the battery pack and for independently powering the system. During lengthy shutdown times, such as during storage and prior to delivery of a new system to a customer, the system shutdown current (leakage current) may totally drain the charge from a battery pack of such an information handling system. One way to avoid draining the initial charge of a battery pack is to ship a new portable information handling system with the battery pack removed from the system. However, this requires separate packaging and additional effort on the part of the customer to install the battery pack prior to use.
Smart battery packs are typically employed for notebook computers, and include intelligence in the form of a battery management unit (BMU) that is responsible for monitoring battery system operation and for controlling battery charge and discharge current from the battery pack using field effect transistor (FET) switching elements that are commonly referred to as a charge FET (C-FET) and discharge FET (D-FET). In the past, such a smart battery pack has been shipped pre-installed within a new notebook computer system with the D-FET of the battery pack disabled (i.e., in “shipping mode”, in which the BMU only performs maintenance gas gauge functions so as to consume less power) in order to prevent any current leakage from the battery pack prior to delivery to a customer. In such a previous configuration, external power from an AC adapter is required to release the smart battery pack from the shipping mode condition by enabling the D-FET during the first time usage of the notebook computer. However, a customer may find such a requirement inconvenient, since the newly delivered notebook computer requires AC power and is incapable of operating on battery power for its first use.
FIG. 1 illustrates the above-described prior art methodology 100 in which an at least partially charged smart battery (e.g., about 40% to about 50% charged) starts in step 102 in shipping mode with the D-FET component/s of the battery pack disabled so as to prevent any current leakage from battery cells of the battery pack. As shown in step 104, the battery management unit (BMU) of the battery pack monitors the System Management Bus (SMBus), including clock line SMCL and data line SMDA, or other suitable data communication bus that exchanges data between the BMU and the embedded controller of the system. As long as the SMBus is not active (indicating no external power is supplied to the system from the AC adapter), the smart battery remains in shipping mode. However, once AC power is connected to the system and it is turned on, then the SMBus becomes active with a rising edge on either SMCL or SMDA line. The BMU detects that the SMBus is active and then enables the D-FET component/s of the battery pack in step 106 to release the battery pack from shipping mode.